Tuesday, September 08, 2009

Enjoying life


We had breakfast at a great New York deli in Dallas yesterday morning. The food was wonderful. I stepped away from the table to go the restroom and on my way I overheard a man at a nearby table tell his friend, "I just want to enjoy my life." I wasn't listening in on purpose, but I overheard his words and it made me think....always a dangerous thing, but here I go.

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Why would someone say that? Why would he have to say to a friend, "I just want to enjoy my life?" The only reason that would come up is if, in fact, he wasn't enjoying it right now. And, so I ask, why isn't he enjoying his life? What's wrong that he has to make this statement? What would it take for this to be reality for him? What would it take for this man to enjoy his life right now?

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What would it take for us to enjoy our lives right now? Why is the enjoyment of my life out there somewhere instead of in this very moment? Part of it, I think, is the reality that we have expectations of what our lives should be. If things don't work out as we think they should then joy still awaits me when all the stars align to meet my expectations, but honestly that doesn't happen for anyone. Enjoyment doesn't come from realized expectations, but from the sheer joy of the moment as I live in relationship with God. Enjoyment of my life shouldn't be linked to what my expectations are, but sadly it is. I, like you, wait for all my expectations to be fulfilled, then I will enjoy my life, but until then I'm just existing. This is more true than most of us want to admit.

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I looked up the word "enjoy" to find its root meaning. Here it is-

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enjoy- c.1380, from O.Fr. enjoir "to give joy, rejoice," from en- "make" + joir "enjoy," from L. gaudere "rejoice." Sense of "have the use or benefit of" first recorded c.1430. Replaced O.E. brucan. Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper

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Our modern English has distanced us from the real meaning of this word we use to describe happiness, a state of being, instead of describing the word rejoice, a way of responding to our situation. We use the word "enjoy" to explain an experience when it was meant to describe a decision. Suddenly a verse in Philippians looks completely different. Paul writes these words, "Rejoice in the Lord always and again I say rejoice." With one small word change we would literally be saying the same thing, but it would mean something completely different to us. How would you respond to this verse if it said, "Enjoy the Lord always and again I say enjoy." It means the same thing, but suddenly the focus is no longer on my situation, but is now on a relationship. I'm thinking all around this relationship with God idea, but it keeps coming up in my thoughts. So, today, change how you view this simple statement, "I want to enjoy my life" which describes a present reality to a new statement, "I so enjoy the Lord and all that means in my life." With just a change in focus you have moved from your perceived reality to a focus on a relationship. You can enjoy the Lord regardless of what's going on in your life! How exciting is that?

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